Introduction to Comparative Politics

1
Introduction to Comparative Politics

• Lecture 19
• The Trouble with Nigeria

2
Agenda for today

• The Trouble with Nigeria Democracy and
  development
  
• Nigerias political tradition
• Favorable and unfavorable conditions for
  democracy
  
• The legacy of colonialism
• Failure of leadership
• Structural conditions

3
The Trouble with Nigeria

• Ranks 148 out of 178 countries in Human
  Development Index
  
• Income level one-tenth of Western countries
• Rapid increase in poverty since 1980
• Military govt 2/3 of time since independence
• No civilian regime has lasted more than six
  years
  
• One of the most corrupt countries in the world

4
Political History 1960-2005

• First Republic 1960(1963)-66
• Westminster Democracy
• Civil War 1967-70
• Biafran Secession
• Military Rule 1970-79
• Benign Corruption
• Second Republic 1979-83
• US-Style Democracy
• The Military Returns 1983-90
• Restoring Efficiency, battling corruption (???)
• Third Republic 1990-93
• US-Style Democracy Revisited
• Party Reform (Social Democrats vs. Republicans)
• Ban on Former Parties, Politicians
• Military Dictatorship 1993-1999 (Abacha)
• Fourth Republic 1999-2005
• U.S. Model reinforced
• Federalism, presidentialism, two-party model

5
Themes of Nigerian Politics

• Military Intervention and Instability
• (7 Coups)
• Two Parties
• Military and Civilians
• Civilians
• Imported Constitutions
• Attempts to Learn from Past Mistakes
• Northern Dominance
• Parties Old Wine in New Bottles
• Escalating Fraud and Corruption
• Cyclical Military Intervention
• Civilian Incompetence
• Fraud and Corruption
• Ethnic Conflicts

6
FAVORABLE CONDITIONS FOR DEMOCRACY

• Authoritarian regimes lack support
• Succession crises (Spain)
• Poor economic performance (Eastern Europe)
• Corruption, violence, state terrorism (LA, EE)
• Prosperity, education, new values (Spain)
• Support of Catholic church (Huntington Latin
  America)
  
• International pressure and support (EU, US,
  USSR)
  
• International diffusion ("snowballing") Eastern
  Europe
  
• Only (1) applies clearly to Nigeria

7
Obstacles to Democracy

• Entrenched authoritarian regimes (China)
• Culture Confucianism and Islam (East Asia,
  Middle East)
  
• Poverty (Africa)
• Economic crises, mismanagement (Eastern Europe)
• Poor leadership (Nigeria)
• All but (1) apply to Nigeria

8
Political Legacies of Colonialism

• Unnatural boundaries (problems of national
  identity)
  
• Paternalistic state (disrespectful of citizens)
• Lack of professional civil servants
  (administrative inefficiency)
  
• Interventionism in economic affairs (economic
  inefficiency)
  
• Imported institutions (lack of fit, legitimacy)

9
Failures of Leadership

• Chinua Achebe The trouble with Nigeria is
  simply and squarely a failure of leadership The
  Nigerian problem is the unwillingness or
  inability of its leaders to rise to the
  responsibility of true leadership.
• Tribalism (the Ibo problem)
• Social injustice (wage inequality)
• Inefficiency/indiscipline (collectively
  self-defeating behavior)
  
• Neglect of the countryside
• Neo-patrimonialism
• Public offices regarded as private property
• Clientelism (unequal networks of exchange)
• Tribalism (legitimacy by identity, rather than
  procedure)
  

10
Why so much rent-seeking (use of political office
for private benefit)?

• Economy
• A Rich Treasury
• The Resource Curse
• Few Alternative Means of Advancement
• Law
• Weak Legal Tradition and Judiciary
• Culture
• Weak National Identity
• Lack of Mutual Trust
• Politics
• Poor Leadership
• Lack of Aggregative Parties
• LESSONS OF NIGERIA Structure, History, and
  leadership all matter